


You're Bad at Bluffing

by Busted



Category: BanG Dream! (Anime), BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Poker Nights, Relationship Advice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-02
Updated: 2019-12-02
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:07:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21642679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Busted/pseuds/Busted
Summary: Chisato taught the basics of Poker to Pastel*Palettes and they've been playing for snacks like cookies. Aya who is fed up with losing seeks help from Sayo, who is a great Poker player.SayoAya fic but its AyaHina and light SayoTsugu cuz i be like that sometimes.
Relationships: Hazawa Tsugumi/Hikawa Sayo, Hikawa Hina/Maruyama Aya
Kudos: 67





	You're Bad at Bluffing

**Author's Note:**

> One time Hina summoned Exodia during Poker.

Chisato revealed the three cards. King of Clubs, Nine of Hearts, Three of Diamonds. No matches, but with her Ace of Hearts and Queen of Hearts, Aya had a pretty decent hand.

Then two more cards came.

Three of Clubs, Ace of Spades. 

The rest of Pastel Palettes revealed their cards.

Eve had a King of Hearts and Five of Diamonds. Maya had a Queen of Clubs and Seven of Spades.

Hina won with her Three of Spades and King of Hearts, making a full house. 

Aya looked away when a broad smile formed on Hina's face. Lately, Aya felt her temperature rise whenever Hina smiled or when they made eye contact. Aya also felt her stomach tighten, but it wasn't the same sensation she got when Pastel*Palettes performed for a large audience. The feeling was like venturing into a void of confectionaries. 

Aya was unsure if she would reach the mint macaron cake, but she held a strong urge to try.

"Hahaha! Thanks for the cookies. See you guys tomorrow!" Hina waved at her friends with her bag of cookies. 

"It's not fair, Hina-chan. Why are you so good at Poker?" asked Aya when Hina's back was turned towards her.

"Aya's right. I never thought you'd be so good at bluffing, Hina. And you're usually not in tune with how others are feeling even if you like observing people." said Maya.

"Because Onee-chan taught me how to play," said Hina.

"Sayo did?" asked Aya.

"Yeah, she's really good at Poker, and I didn't know until I told her that we were playing Poker for cookies. Then she taught me a lot of stuff and gave me a lot of boppin' tips. I didn't even know advice could be so boppin'," said Hina.

When she returned home, Aya held her cookie and ate it very slowly. She was too focused on what Hina said. If Sayo was so good at Poker, then shouldn't she also ask for her advice? 

"No, but then Hina would find out and tease me," Aya thought. 

Aya finished her cookie and kept swiping her phone screen. 

Aya- Sayo-san, this is Aya from Pastel*Palettes. I have a favor to ask.

Sayo- Maruyama-san? What's going on.

Aya- It's kind of embarrassing, so I'll tell you when we meet. Oh, and can it be when Hina isn't home. 

Sayo- Is this about her? 

Aya- Kinda.

Sayo- I see. Hina talks about you a lot, so I figured this was coming. I'll ask what she's doing tomorrow. 

Sayo- I just talked with Hina, and she said she's going to watch a movie with Kokoro, Ako, and Kanon tomorrow. So, I'll see you tomorrow, Maruyama-san?

Aya- Sounds good! See you tomorrow, Sayo-san.

Tomorrow came, and Aya found herself in Sayo's room alone with the Poker master.

"You want me to teach you how to play Poker because you want more cookies?"

(So she's not here because she wants advice on how to ask Hina out.)

Sayo's room looked more tidy and minimalistic than Aya imagined. A dark teal color wrapped the walls, and her pastel green bed with two dog plushies was firmly tucked into a corner. Her iconic blue guitar stood next to her bookshelf, which contained a handful of books mostly on guitar, music theory, breeds of dogs, and baking. Sayo went over to her desk drawer and grabbed a deck of playing cards.

When Sayo opened the deck box, Aya saw that the cards were sleeved, and the artwork on the sleeves was a blue guitar.

The two girls sat down on the floor and faced each other.

"Maruyama-san, let's play a few theoretical rounds of Poker so I can better assess the situation. 

The two played with Sayo acting as a player and as the dealer. 

"I see. You have some habits that need improving, and your bluffing is non-existent. So, before we start, Maruyama-san, close your eyes."

"Close my eyes?"

"Yes."

"Uhm, Sayo-san, what's going on?"

Aya felt a tablecloth tighten on her head.

"What?"

Aya held back her tears.

"Maruyama-san, when you get a bad hand, you tend to frown, and if it's a terrible hand, you'll sometimes cry a little bit. When you get a good hand, you hum and look around the room. I'd even guess that if you were playing Poker with Pastel*Palettes, you would be looking at the cookies that you so desperately want."

"Sayo-san, you learned this much just from playing a few rounds of Poker with me?"

"Yes, I learned that much from observing you, but most people aren't aware of how a simple game causes these reactions."

"I'm that bad, huh? Also, why am I wearing a blindfold?"

"It's okay, Maruyama-san. I'll do my best to turn you into a better Poker player. Poker is a visual focused game. Your reactions and emotions change when you look at your two cards and the cards on the table. Furthermore, you will also be observing the people competing against you. And, for your case, you're playing against your friends who are really familiar with you. One of which is Shirasagi-san, who has been acting since she was a child and Hina, who."

Sayo paused. She wasn't sure if she should tell Aya about the Aya Observation Diary she found in Hina's room.

"Actually, Chisato-san is the dealer, and what did you want to say about Hina?"

"Uh, she's a genius, and she's also quite fond of looking at you, Maruyama-san."

Aya flared up like a cookie in the oven and faced Sayo's guitar. 

"I figured as much, but Sayo-san, lately, I can't tell if that's a good or bad thing."

"I see. I'll teach you more about Poker before we talk about Hina." 

"Do I still keep the blindfold on?"

"Yes."

Sayo grabbed Aya's hand and put two cards in it. 

"Maruyama-san, your hand is pretty good."

Aya jumped up.

"Really?"

"Maruyama-san, concentrate. Don't show your satisfaction so freely."

"Sorry."

"It's okay. That type of reaction was normal. Let's try again."

Once again, Sayo grabbed Aya's hand and placed two cards in it. 

"Maruyama-san, your hand is pretty good."

Aya smiled and slightly nodded. 

"It is small, but it's an improvement. Let's go over observation next. You may take off your blindfold now."

Aya lifted her blindfold up, and she saw a blur of lemonade eyes and minty whipped cream hair. 

(Hina? Is that you?)

Her vision became clearer, and Sayo looked at her with concern.

"Are you okay, Maruyama-san?"

"Yes! I'm ready to continue our lesson."

Sayo took out her phone and sat next to Aya. 

"Here, watch this for a few minutes and tell me what you learned."

"What am I supposed to be looking for?"

"Anything, habits, gestures."

"Understood." 

Aya found it challenging to concentrate when Sayo was right next to her, but she tried her best. It was just watching some people play Poker, so she couldn't make any mistakes, right?

...

Aya replayed the video again and again and concentrated on one person only. Something clicked inside her head.

"Sayo-san, that person likes to scratch their head. I didn't notice it the first time because they make it seem so natural. But, as the group played more rounds, that person seemed to scratch their head more whenever they were dealt a bad hand."

"As they should, Maruyama-san. By making it look natural, they hide their dissatisfaction with their hands. Furthermore, people's habits are harder to hide as time passes because they will be in a more relaxed state. Sometimes it's difficult to know if someone is doing something naturally or if they're doing something as a result of their two cards. Did you notice anything else?"

"No. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay. Even pointing that out is great. One big thing that most people tend to do is create a dome with both hands and occasionally look at their cards if they receive a good hand."

"So that's why Eve-san does that sometimes."

"It's an unconscious reaction, like that person's head-scratching. Also, Hina told me that you like wearing a disguise when you're in public. If you wear accessories like dust masks and sunglasses to a poker game, you put yourself at an immediate advantage because it makes your entire face impossible to read."

"Hina said that?"

"Actually, she showed me."

Sayo showed her some messages that Hina sent. Among them were a couple of photos of Aya wearing sunglasses and a dust mask. But, Hina doodled on them and gave Aya a variety of facial expressions. 

"Fufu," Sayo chuckled and put away her phone.

"To be honest, I thought you were looking for advice on how to ask Hina out."

Aya felt multiple knots form in her stomach. It was the same feeling she got yesterday when Pastel*Palettes played Poker. But, the atmosphere was intensified because Sayo flashed a light into the void, which made Aya's vision of the mint macaron cake much clearer.

"Hmm? What do you mean, Sayo-san?"

"I think Hina is quite fond of you, but she's not sure how to express how she feels because, as we both know, she comes off as insensitive sometimes. Even so, every time she talks about you, Hina is wrapped around in admiration and intrigue.

"Really? I never thought of the possibility that she liked me that way. Also, uhh… thanks for the lesson today, Sayo-san! I really appreciate it!"

Aya bowed and almost tripped on the floor before leaving the Hikawa house.

Sayo- Yeah, she likes you.

Hina- Really? How can you tell, Onee-chan?!

Sayo- I just can.

Hina- Is it because you and Tsugu are dating now?

Sayo- We're not dating. 

Hina- Hmm. Then what was it?

Sayo- It's because she was more interested in knowing about what you said about her rather than how blocking her facial expressions is beneficial in Poker.

Hina- Hey, hey Onee-chan. Do you think Maruyama Hina sounds better? Or Hikawa Aya? Ohh or Hazawa Sayo or Hikawa Tsugumi.

Sayo leaves Hina on read.

Next Monday at the Pastel*Palettes agency.

"Aya-chan, please take off your sunglasses and face mask," said Chisato.

**Author's Note:**

> oh... chara expo is this weekend :(
> 
> also no Eve dialogue cos idk anything much about her and dont want her to come off as someone who talks about samurai and bushido code.


End file.
